End Game
by whosconfused
Summary: A continuation of Girl Meets World picking up directly after "Girl Meets Goodbye." This story follows our favorite gang through the rest of high school and onto college. More life lessons, challenges, fun moments, growing up and of course romantic relationships!
1. Chapter 1 - Life Loves Us

**A/N: It has literally been forever since I've written a story! I recently binge-watched GMW and got inspired! This story continues on directly after Girl Meets Goodbye and will follow them through high school and college.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own a darn thing!**

Chapter 1 – Life Loves Us

As Riley and Maya sit in their favorite chairs at Topanga's, Riley puts her hand over Maya's hands in her lap and says, "Promise me this,"

"Okay," Maya responds. "Time and distance have no power over us. You and I are together for as long as we live."

Maya raises her hand with a knowing smirk and says, "Thunder."

Riley smiles and locks hands with Maya while replying, "Lightning."

"Done," Maya says definitively.

The girls stand and Lucas, Farkle, Smackle and Zay all run up and surround them in a big group hug which ends in all of them falling to the ground while laughing hysterically. The girls' parents smile at the sight of their kids happiness.

"I'm so glad y'all aren't leaving," Shawn says with a sigh of relief to his long time best friend.

"Me too," Cory replied.

"I couldn't do this new fatherhood thing without you," Shawn responds nodding towards Maya.

"Yea...uh duh," Cory retorts while smacking Shawn on the arm.

"How would you feel about being neighbors," Shawn asks with a huge smile forming.

Cory shoots straight up out of his chair, takes in a huge breath and shakes out a long, exaggerated, "Yyyyyyyyyyyyyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy!"

At this point, everyone in the cafe turns to look at Cory's outburst. "We're moving into the apartment next door to you guys," Shawn announces.

Riley and Maya turn to each other and scream, "Yyyyyyyyyyyyyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy!"

They start jumping up and down as the rest of their friends come back together for a group hug. Everyone was just so happy that they were all staying together.

"I'm so excited for this wonderful news," Topanga exclaims as she leans in and hugs Katy.

"So am I," Katy replies, "Now that we're a two-income family we can afford to move out of our crumbling old apartment and Shawn will be selling that cabin of his. We've been talking about getting a new place for our family for a few weeks now, especially when Shawn decided to adopt Maya and when we saw an opening in your building we took it as a sign that life knew exactly what we needed."

"Wait," Topanga interrupted, "Why didn't y'all say anything about this when I called to talk about London?"

"We didn't want to influence your decision," Katy replied. "We trusted that y'all would make the right decision. We had hope that life would work out for the best either way."

"Life really does love us. I'm glad we're friends," Topanga says while giving Katy another hug.

"And now neighbors," Katy replies.

"LET'S MOVE YA IN NOW, SHAWNY," Cory yells hopping out of his chair and darting out the cafe door.

Shawn turns to Topanga and says, "Yea I'm not going to be the one to explain to him how adulthood works. All yours, Topanga!"

"Ugh do I have to," Topanga exclaims dramatically.

"Don't worry, Mom. I got this," Auggie says matter-of-factually. "Besides, I need to go tell my wife the good news."

He starts to head towards the door and Uncle Josh gets up to follow him, "I'll go with him." He nods towards Topanga who nods back. He catches Maya's eye on his way out and smiles at her before walking out the cafe door.

"Alright time to close up," Topanga announces.

Farkle, Zay, Smackle and Lucas all hug both girls individually and wave goodbye as they leave.

"Let's go, daughter of mine," Shawn beckons towards Maya while holding his arm out. Maya smiles and turns towards Riley, "See you tomorrow, Riles." She grabs her Dad's hand and her mom follows close behind them out the door.

Topanga turns the last of the lights out and Riley leans in to hug her before they lock up. "Thanks for valuing our bay window, Mom."

"Thanks for helping me find mine," Topanga replies. They lock up and head home for the night.


	2. Chapter 2 - New World

**A/N: I want to stay as true to the characters and show as much as possible. That being said, I'm not a history buff so school lessons and lectures may not be the smartest or most accurate. I'm too lazy to do actual research so just let it happen and pretend it's educational.**

Chapter 2 – New World

"Hello, Hallway. You are the best hallway and I will never leave you because life loves us together." Riley runs her hands along the walls of her high school with Maya following behind her looking amused at Riley's dramaticness. "Hello, Hole. You are the best hole type hallway thingy that a girl could ever hope would be in her school," Riley waves lovingly towards the lower stair level, "Are you a hallway, half a stairwell or just a random architectural mistake? I don't care, I love you for teaching me everything I know."

"Really, Riley? That almost kinda hurts," Mr. Matthews says putting his hand over his heart and pretending to need the doorway of his classroom for support.

"She's just really, really happy to not be in London, Matthews. Don't be offended, you're still the best teacher," Maya says as she walks past Mr. Matthews and into the class room. Riley drifts close behind still swirling her arms around.

"But now that I'm in a competition with a hole, I gotta up my game," Mr. Matthews replies following them inside the classroom. The girls take their seats as the bell rings and the class settles down.

"What do you have for us, Mr. Matthews," Farkle asks curiously looking at the words _New World_ written on the chalkboard.

"I have a project for you," Mr. Matthews replied. He then paused for the familiar outburst from his students.

"Awww," the class groans while Farkle says, "Yay!"

"For the next six weeks, you will work in groups to form your own new worlds. It can be anything you want but you will need to establish order in this new world. So, you will need to create a world with resources, explain what kind of people or creatures live there, establish some sort of guideline for living there such as a government, and explain how their society works. Be creative and at the end of the six weeks I want your groups to present what you've created."

"Aw, boo," Maya exclaimed from her seat. "This sounds like a lot of work," she whined as she put her head on her desk.

Riley turned around in her desk to face her best friend, "Don't worry, Peaches. You can do the artwork and the rest of the group can come up with everything else," she says to comfort her.

Maya popped her head up, "Artwork you say?"

"Yes, artwork. You can sculpt the landscape, and make stuff, and then paint that stuff, and then attach all that stuff together and be happy because artwork," Riley replied dreamily swirling her arms around.

"This is creepily making me want to actually work on this project," Maya responded moving her head in circular motions as Riley's arm twirls.

"Actually, Maya," Mr. Matthews interjected, "You and Zay will be covering establishing order and guidelines in the new world you create."

"You said what now," Zay snapped as if he had just woken up from a nap.

"But," Maya says sadly as she curls into a ball under her desk.

"Daddy, what are you doing," Riley questioned furrowing her eye brows in confusion.

"I knew you guys would form groups and assign each other the parts that were easiest for each one of you but that's not how this project is going to work this time," Mr. Matthews responded calmly.

"But," Riley retorted sadly following in Maya's footsteps and curling up into a ball under her desk.

"Maya and Zay will be over establishing order, Lucas and Smackle will be over artwork and Riley and Farkle will be over resources and survival," Mr. Matthews replies.

At this point Maya and Riley shoot up from under their desks, and yell, "YOU SAID WHAT NOW?!"

"Huckleberry and Smackle will completely butcher the artwork! That makes no sense," Maya exclaims.

"Hey," Lucas interjects, "I can...build stuff...and paint things...yea this is gonna be a disaster."

"I'm cool with it," Smackle retorts while leaning towards Lucas and smiling.

"Smackle," Farkle yells, "I thought we covered this hitting on Lucas thing!"

"Yea well he's my partner now," Smackle snaps back. "Don't worry, Dearest, it will strictly be a work-related partnership. Right, Lucas? You're with Riley now so you have to use self-control man!"

Lucas exhales a short, "Okay."

"Daddy, why are you doing this," Riley questioned her father again.

"Because I want you to learn from each other and hone skills that you didn't know you had. If you all did the parts that came easiest to you, none of you would be challenged. I want to challenge you to learn something new and work at becoming successful at it. Lean on each other and ask each other for help on the things that are unfamiliar to you. That is the only way you all would survive and thrive in a new world," Mr. Matthews concludes.

The gang sits at their usual spot in Topanga's and everyone slumps in their chairs looking defeated.

Auggie walks up to them from behind the counter and inspects everyone inquisitively then goes up to Riley who has a blank stare on her face. He lifts her arm up which plops right back down and causes her to slump further into her chair.

"Mommy, I think they're broken," he says towards Topanga. Cory walks in and stops when he sees the

gang slumped in their chairs.

"What did you do," Topanga retorts giving Cory a knowing glare.

"I simply gave them a project about creating a new world," Cory replied putting his hands up in a sign of surrender.

"That sounds fun and easy," Auggie responds. "I would create a world made of cupcakes and Ava would be my queen and we would rule over the bakers of the world. We would live a short, unhealthy but very happy life in our sweet kingdom."

Topanga chuckles at Auggie's comment and walks out from behind the counter. "That does sound fun and easy," she starts, "But what's the catch, Cory?"

Cory smiles from ear to ear before replying, "They've each been assigned tasks they don't have skills or knowledge in."

"Oh," Topanga says. "Kids sit up! You are being entirely too dramatic over this! He just wants you to learn something new from each other. This is a good thing."

"Exactly," Cory exclaims. "Who's married to the smart lawyer lady? This guy!" He points his thumbs at himself and jumps up and down in a goofy manner.

"But we don't know how to start. Normally, Farkle and Smackle would be telling us what to do and now they've been rendered useless," Riley retorts.

"Well, this is the part where you lean on each other and ask each other for help," Topanga responds. They walk away leaving the group to work things out.

"Ok fine, I'll start asking questions. Lucas, when you would go camping in Texas, what kinds of things did you need in order to survive," Riley asked getting a pen and notebook out.

"That's a good question, Riley," he responded. "Well I would bring things that met my basic needs such as a sleeping bag so I could sleep, food so I wouldn't starve and a tent to shelter me from the climate."

Riley started writing out a list and turned to her partner Farkle. "Look, Farkle, I've started a 'Basic Needs' list and an itemized list of what we would need to fulfill those needs in this column. We can start with this." Farkle finally sat up and the wheels in his mind began to turn.

"This is a good start. We can work from here and continue in this line of thinking," he stated. "Thanks, for the info, Lucas. And thanks for asking for help, Riley. Let's get to work." Farkle and Riley grabbed their backpacks and moved to an open table.

Lucas looked up at Maya who was sitting across from him. "Maya, what would you start with if you were working on the artwork? Any specific supplies that Smackle and I would need," Lucas asked.

"That's a good question, Huckleberry. I would start with looking into clay for sculpting. That way you can create and mold different landscapes and terrain out of it. I have a favorite brand that I use and I'll text you a link to this website that has tutorial videos that show you how to make basic formations with clay. That's what I used to learn how to sculpt," Maya responded and she grabbed her phone out of her pocket and began to text Lucas the link.

"Thanks, Maya. That's very helpful," Lucas replied. He turned toward his partner, Smackle. "You want to go watch these tutorial videos outside on the patio," he asked. "Sure," she replied.

"Wait before you go I have a question," Maya said quickly. "Smackle, how would you start working on adding rules and order in a new society?"

Smackle smiled and replied, "Well first, I would research the different forms of government we have such as democracy, monarchy, etc. Then I would look the different effects each form of government has had on the people of their respective countries."

"Aw man does that mean we have to actually do research," Zay interrupted.

"Yes it does," Maya responded. "Thank you, Smackle." Lucas and Smackle grabbed their things and headed out the door onto the patio.

Maya turns to Zay who just keeps shaking his head no. "I can't do this, Maya. I won't make it. Like it might actually kill me," he says pretending like he's dying.

Maya chuckles at him. "Do you remember when Farkle, Riley and me became Commies for a bit?"

"Yea it was the weirdest thing ever," Zay retorted.

"Well we know about Communism from that experience and how it impacted us. We know about Democracy based on our own country and past lessons. So we know more than we give ourselves credit for. I think we can do this. And if I can do it, you definitely can," Maya said.

"You're right, Maya. I'm glad we're partners," Zay replied and he smiled at Maya.

After working separately for a while, the group slowly gathered back together. Riley smiled while looking at all of her friends. "This is gonna be a great project," she said confidently.

Lucas then pulled Riley aside. "Hey so we haven't really had a chance to talk since the whole London thing," Lucas said quietly so the others wouldn't hear. "Are you and I just picking up where we left off?"

Riley grabbed Lucas's hand and smiled at him. "Of course we are...boyfriend," she said affectionately.

"Well then, girlfriend, want to go to the movies this weekend? I was thinking we could go,"

"YES," Riley exclaimed cutting Lucas off mid-sentence. He chuckled then continued on, "as I was saying, we could go to dinner first then a movie."

"That sounds lovely," Riley sighed. "Oh can I invite Maya? Oh and Zay? And Farkle and Smackle?"

"Of course," he replied grinning from ear to ear. They turned back towards the group who was eyeing them knowingly.

"We're definitely in a new world now," Zay says sarcastically while elbowing Lucas on the arm.


	3. Chapter 3 - Really Real First Date

**A/N: I just want y'all to know that this is not a story for a specific couple that I'm shipping. This is simply my version of where I think the writers were going with the lives of these characters. Obviously, now that the show has been canceled, we won't know where the writers were going to go with the story so this is just my version.**

Chapter 3 – Really Real First Date

"MAYA," Riley yells from inside her closet as she throws all her clothes over her head and onto her bedroom floor.

Maya sits up from laying on Riley's bed and says,"What's a matter, honey?" in a baby voice.

"I have nothing to wear on my first official, really real date with Lucas and I'm gonna have to cancel because I can't go in nothing because...I'm a lady," Riley says while plopping down on the bed next to Maya face first.

"Mmmm hmmmmm mehhhh bemmmm mmmmm," Riley mumbles into her comforter.

Maya chuckles in amusement. "Aw come here, Wiley," she replies in a baby voice again reaching her arms out.

Riley slowly pushes herself up enough and crawls over to Maya. She lays her head in her lap and Maya begins to stroke her hair.

"What's wrong," Maya asks.

"I'm really nervous. What if this doesn't go well like last time? Lucas and I could barley look at each other or talk to each other then. This is just really new to me. To all of us. I don't want this to mess up our group of friends," Riley mutters and then sits up and looks at Maya seriously. "And I especially don't want this to change you and me. You're ok with this right?"

Maya chuckles and puts her hand on Riley's arm. "Of course I'm ok with this," she replies, "I made this happen remember? Both times."

"Maya, I'm serious. We haven't really talked about this. The triangle was a huge ordeal and there were lots of feelings involved in that. I know you and Lucas care for each other and that can't just go away. I just need to know that me being with him isn't gonna hurt you. I couldn't do that," Riley explains.

Maya sighs. "You aren't hurting me. Ranger Rick and I are just friends. Y'all have real feelings for each other and it's time that you guys gave it a real shot. I promise that nothing can ever come between us," Maya replies reassuringly.

Riley smiles at her and mutters, "I'm still nervous, Maya."

Maya puts her arm around her and pulls her in for a hug. "I'll be right there with you," she says as Riley puts her head on Maya's shoulder. "We all will."

Ava crosses her arms and furrows her eye brows inquisitively as she inspects Cory curled up in a fetal position on the couch. She pulls out a toy sword and pokes him with it. When she gets no reaction, she goes over to the other side of him and pokes him again. "Yea he's definitely broken," shes states matter-of-factually.

She drops the sword and sits next to Auggie at the dining room table. "Topi, where my cheese at," Ava demands banging her hands on the place mat in front of her.

Topanga rolls her eyes and grabs a plate of cheese and crackers and puts it down on the table.

"Finally, I'm starving," Ava says grabbing a handful of cheese and stuffing it in her mouth.

"What's a girl gotta do to get a 'thank you' around here," Topanga exclaims looking annoyed at Ava.

"Thank you, Mommy," Auggie replies as he shoots her a smile.

"Yea, yea thanks," Ava says half-heartedly with her mouth full of food.

"Touching," Topanga replies sarcastically. She turns around and walks into the living room then bends down to grab the sword Ava dropped. She holds the sword above her head then yells, "Hee yaw," as she jabs Cory with it.

"Yooooowwwww," Cory yelps out in pain."What'd ya do that for," he asks while sitting upright on the couch.

"You've been like this for an hour now! Stop being a baby about this," she exclaims sitting down beside him on the couch. "She's growing up. She's gonna date and have a boyfriend and even get married one day. And hopefully, to an actual man and not a man-child like I did!"

"How dare you say those things to me," Cory yells as he curls back into a fetal position.

"What's the big deal, Daddy? I've been married to Ava for twenty five years now and you guys don't seem to care! Riley's only going on a date," Auggie interrupts.

"Wahhhh," Cory cries into the couch.

"This is just...different, Auggie," Topanga explains. She rolls her eyes at Cory and sighs. Before she can say any more they hear a knock at the door.

Cory jumps up off the couch and yells, "Don't let him in, Topanga!"

She walks around him and opens the door. "Come on in guys," she says as Lucas and Zay enter the apartment.

"Oooooo," Auggie and Ava tease seeing that Lucas and Zay are all dressed up in button down shirts.

"Aren't you guys a little dressed up for the movies," Topanga questions looking them up and down.

"I wanted to look my best for Riley. You know give her the absolute best first real date ever kinda," Lucas responds nervously.

"And I'm just here for moral support and hope that Maya gives me like eighty four percent," Zay retorts.

Riley and Maya come down the stairs and emerge from the hallway in flowy sun dresses.

"Wow," Lucas and Zay say simultaneously.

"Ouchie wah wah, ladies," Ava says snapping her fingers. "This reminds me of our first date," she says sighing and giving Auggie googly eyes.

"It's them now, sweetheart," Auggie responds as he takes of bite of a cracker.

"Hey guys, you look very nice," Riley says greeting the boys and walking towards them.

"And I repeat, wow," Lucas replies.

"You ready to sit next to me while we sit next to these two," Maya asks Zay.

"I look forward to it," Zay replies shooting her a smile.

"Uh girls, I just remembered that you can't go out tonight because I heard on the news that the movie theater um...exploded. Huge, huge...tragedy," Cory says weakly.

"Wow..." Topanga responds in disbelief.

"We could just go to another movie theater then," Riley replies playing along.

"Well you can't because the explosion from THAT movie theater created a domino effect and all the other theaters exploded too..." Cory responds.

"And I repeat, wow..." Topanga says shaking her head no.

"Then we would just not go to the movies but to the park. Or maybe the lookout over the cliff where people park their cars and..." Maya retorts with a huge smile forming and holding in a laugh at how angry Mr. Matthews is getting.

"GAHH," he interrupts her. "Fine! Go to the movies! Just don't be mixing that popcorn around with your hands and touching stuff!" He puts his hands up in surrender and plops down on the couch.

"Don't worry, Matthews," Maya says. "I'll keep an eye on them and make sure they don't do anything too crazy. You know how wild these two get." She puts her hands on her cheeks and makes a fish face.

Mr. Matthews yelps out a high-pitched, "Oh!" as he begins clenching his fists.

"Yea and I'll keep my eyes on Maya," Zay says while grabbing Maya by the shoulders and pulling her out of reach of Mr. Matthews.

"Mr. and Mrs. Matthews, please don't worry. I'll be nothing but respectful to your daughter. I promise," Lucas finally speaks up. Riley smiles at him.

Mr. Matthews crosses his arms and pouts. Topanga walks over and lightly smacks him on the back of the head before replying, "We know you will, Lucas. Please be back here no later than ten."

"Yes, ma'am," Lucas responds. He turns around and opens the door, holding it open for his friends. They all yell a quick 'goodbye' while walking out the door.

Topanga gives Cory another knowing look before rolling her eyes and heading towards the kitchen.

"We're meeting Farkle and Smackle at the restaurant right," Maya asks as the four of them hold onto the subway pole.

"Yea they went ahead and got us a table so we don't run late for the movie," Lucas replies.

"Wow, you planned ahead," Riley says impressed.

"Yea I wanted this to be perfect," he replies shyly.

"Here's our stop," Zay says putting his hand on Maya's back leading her off the subway.

Lucas grabs Riley's hand as he leads her onto the platform.

The gang talks and laughs as they walk to the restaurant. They arrive inside and Farkle waves them over to the table.

"Hey guys, thanks for grabbing us a table," Lucas says pulling a chair out for Riley to sit in. Zay follows suit for Maya and the girls sit down.

"No problem. We should make it early to the theater at this rate," Farkle replies.

"I calculate that we'll be out of here in approximately one hour and seventeen minutes according to the rate at which the waiters and cooks have been serving each table," Smackle adds.

"Cool," Zay responds.

Just then the waiter walks up to take their drink order. He takes their drink orders and passes out menus.

As they look over their menus, Zay gets the conversation started, "I can't wait to see this movie. Let's hope it has that usual Marvel magic that all the other movies were missing."

"Yea, I wonder if they're gonna keep it close to the comics or change it up since this movie has been done several times now," Lucas replies.

"Yea and you two," Zay says sternly as he points at Farkle and Smackle, "You better not ruin this by figuring out the plot of the story then saying it out loud. I want to be surprised."

"Hey! I stopped doing that...that much," Farkle retorts. "And how do you know that Smackle does that?"

"She always does that just in general," Zay responds giving Smackle a knowing look.

"Yes, I do. I do that quite often. Movies don't tend to hold my attention though so I'll probably fall asleep within ten minutes," she replies.

"Yea she does that a lot. She just can't stay awake during movies," Farkle says sweetly giving her a quick hug.

"I enjoy the company though and sleeping on your shoulder is my favorite," she says leaning into the hug.

"Wait did you say that this movie has been done several times now? I didn't know that," Riley interjects.

"Wait what movie are we seeing again," Maya asks distractedly as she stacks sugar packets on top of her propped up menu.

"The new Spider-Man movie," Zay responds.

"There's been several Spider-Man movies done by different studios but this will be the first one done by the original comic book company," Farkle explains.

"How have y'all never heard of this? Have neither of you ever watched any of the Spider-Man movies? There's like five or six of them," Lucas inquires.

"Uh nope, not one," Riley says.

"Seriously," Lucas asks.

"Yea, Lucas. I don't really watch non-girly movies. I mostly stick to romantic comedies and movies that are happy at the beginning, middle and end," she answers smiling as she thought of her favorite movies.

"Yea and when you grow up poor, you don't really go to movies or rent them," Maya counters. "Also, I grew up with that," she added motioning towards Riley who was still smiling lost in a trance thinking of her favorite movies. "So most of the movies I've seen are sappy, gooey romances."

"Well, we're gonna need to fix that," Lucas states. "Y'all need to expand your movie-viewing."

"I have tons of movies and a theater room at my house," Farkle interjects. "We should make this a weekly thing but more of a hangout."

"Thanks, Farkle that sounds fun," Riley responds. "But no scary movies. They scare me."

"Aw but those are my favorite kind," Maya exclaims. "Because of you, I've only seen a few scary movies and I would definitely want to expand that!"

"But, Peaches," Riley whines.

"Don't worry, I'll protect you," Lucas says grabbing Riley's hand.

"Are you all ready to order," the waiter interrupts. They give their orders and each hand the waiter their menus. He rolls his eyes when Maya hands him her menu and all the sugar packets fall down everywhere.

"Oh, Maya we can't take you anywhere," Riley states as she chuckles in amusement.

Maya gives her a puppy dog look and Riley exclaims, "Never mind I will take you everywhere with me always!" She lets go of Lucas' hand and pulls Maya into a hug and twirls her hair.

"I'm really glad we're all together," Farkle says looking around at his friends. "I don't know what we would've done if you had moved to London, Riley. I'm glad this didn't have to change."

"Me too," she replies.

They continue to talk and laugh and soon their food comes. They eat and the boys pay for the girls' meals. They all head out the door to walk the few blocks to the movie theater.

Farkle and Smackle take the lead walking hand-in-hand conversing about the history behind some of the buildings they were passing. Zay and Maya walk in the middle doing silly steps and dances to make each other laugh. Riley and Lucas walk with his arm around her shoulders and hers around his waist. They chuckle at Zay and Maya's antics.

"You think they like each other," Riley asks shifting her eyes between them and Lucas.

He shrugs before replying, "I don't know. I'm not entirely sure what's going on between him and Vanessa so I wouldn't try and push him and Maya together just yet." He gives Riley a knowing look.

"Me? Push? I would never," Riley says in a playful shocked voice. "I never meddle in people's lives. Especially, in my best friend's life."

Lucas rolls his eyes at her and smiles. When they reach the theater, the boys pay for the girl's tickets and they ask the girls grab seats while they get the concessions. Lucas takes this opportunity to talk to Zay.

"Hey so you're really going all out for Maya tonight," he starts and Zay smiles as he looks down.

"Yea, she's cool," he states. Lucas examines his best friend a bit before asking, "So do you like her? What exactly happened between you and Vanessa?"

Zay sighed before replying, "Well the long distance thing was working at first. You know the whole 'absence makes the heart grow fonder' thing? But then she started being very vague any time we talked and all of our interactions grew shorter and became less frequent. She hasn't returned any of my texts or calls in weeks, man."

"That sucks," Lucas says putting his hand on Zay's shoulder. "I'm sorry that happened. I know you really liked her."

Lucas was about to ask him about Maya but Farkle turned around too quickly and nearly dropped his bucket of popcorn. Zay jumped out of the way and Lucas was able to help Farkle find his balance. Farkle smiled and nodded in gratitude and went off to put butter on his popcorn. Lucas and Zay got their snacks, met back up with Farkle and headed towards the theater.

Meanwhile, while the boys were getting snacks, the girls found a row of six seats together and used their purses to save seats.

"I can already feel the drowsiness hitting me and the movie hasn't even started," Riley and Maya hear Smackle say from the end of the row. She leans her head on her arm and begins to drift off.

Riley and Maya smile at her amused at learning yet another new thing about their most recent addition to the group, Smackle.

"So," Riley starts inquisitively. "What's going on with you and Zay?"

Maya shrugs before replying, "I don't know. I'm just grateful that I didn't have to pay for any of this."

"Well do you think he likes you? Do you think you could like him," Riley begins questioning Maya.

Maya runs her hands through her hair before answering, "I don't know, Riles! I know he asked Josh's permission to sit with me next to you guys so I don't really know what that means."

"Well he's been treating you like you're on a date soo..." Riley responds playfully elbowing Maya's side.

"Well I don't know why he's doing all this. I guess it means we're going on dates with you but aren't dating," Maya states in confusion.

"Or maybe he likes you and views this as an actual first date for you two," Riley says with a hint of excitement in her voice.

"I don't know that he does," Maya replies. "He's been pretty casual all night. I think he's just being a good friend to Lucas just as I am to you for some reason!" She rolls her eyes at Riley.

They see the boys enter the theater and they wave their hands so they could find them. Farkle grabs the seat next to Smackle and Zay sits between him and Maya. Lucas grabs the seat on the end next to Riley.

"Thanks for the snacks," Maya whispers to Zay. He smiles at her and puts the popcorn bucket in her lap. "And thanks for paying for well...everything tonight," Maya says offering him some popcorn.

"Hey I'm the one who should be thanking you," he replies. "Guys have been giving me jealous looks all night wondering how I got to be with such a beautiful girl." He smiles at her again before grabbing a handful of popcorn and throwing some towards a drowsy Smackle. Maya looks down at the popcorn bucket in her lap feeling awkward as she pondered on what Riley had said to her a few minutes ago.

She feels eyes on her and she turns her head towards Riley and Lucas next to her. Riley was smiling ear to ear with a her hand over her heart and Lucas gave her a puzzled look before looking at Riley then smiling and shaking his head. She could see that he was putting two and two together in his mind.

Seeing that they still had a few minutes before the previews start, Maya puts the bucket of popcorn in Zay's lap then stands and leans towards Lucas and whispers, "Hey can I talk to you outside for a sec?"

He looks up confused but nods in agreement. He hands Riley the popcorn bucket which she gladly takes and begins putting handfuls of popcorn in her mouth.

He and Maya walk out of the theater and when they reach the hallway she grabs him by the collar and pulls his face close to hers. "What did Riley tell you," she asks sternly her voice low.

"She tells me a lot of things but what are you asking about in particular," he replies with a smirk knowing this will agitate her. His move works and she lets go of him out of frustration.

"About me and Zay," she exclaims as she begins to pace.

"Maya," Lucas says putting his hands up in surrender. "She didn't tell me much. When we were walking over here from the restaurant, she asked me if I thought y'all liked each other. I told her that it was too soon to tell and not to meddle."

Maya stops pacing and faces him before asking, "You did?"

"Yes of course I did," he replies. "Look, I talked to Zay while we were getting snacks earlier and asked him about you and Vanessa..."

"Oh yea, Vanessa," Maya interrupts.

"They're pretty much done," he says. "So you know...he's not like dating both of you or anything."

She looks down awkwardly and Lucas can tell there's a lot on her mind. "Are you ok? Did I say something wrong," he asks concerned.

"No I just," she starts hesitantly. "I'm just not ready for dating right now. You know the triangle was really confusing, then the ski lodge stuff happened which put Josh back in the picture and now add Zay and it's just..."

"It's too much," Lucas finishes her sentence. She looks up almost surprised that he understood.

"Yea," she states.

Lucas sighs and furrows his brows like he's formulating what to say then he finally says, "You don't need to figure any of this out now. I told you once that I wanted you to be happy and I meant it. I think right now for you to be happy means you taking time for yourself and just finding out who you are. Don't let anyone pressure you into something you're not ready for. Trust me, I've been there. It's not worth it."

She looks at him in full shock this time. "What," he asks.

"It's just...you really get it," she states.

He chuckles before saying, "I know we don't have these kinds of talks often, Maya, but I know you. You're one of my best friends and I'll always look out for you."

She smiles at him and sighs a sigh of relief before breathing out a, "Thanks, Huckleberry."

"Anytime, ma'am," he responds while pretending to tip an imaginary hat.

She turns to head back inside the theater but is stopped when Lucas says, "Hey one more thing."

She turns back around. "Yea?"

"Out of curiosity, why did you pull me out here to talk instead of Riley" he questions.

She pauses before responding, "It's hard for me to talk to Riley about this kind of stuff."

He furrows his brows in confusion.

"You know, boys and ooey gooey feelings," she exclaims. "She just feels too much and meddles too much and just gets a little crazy over stuff like this. When I looked over at you two after Zay called me beautiful, she was already giddy over what he said and I could tell that you knew something." She paused and gave him a knowing look before continuing, "I know you too, Ranger Rick. Now let's get inside before our dates get suspicious!"

They get back right before the previews start and the gang settles into movie-viewing mode. After the movie, Farkle wakes Smackle up and they say their goodbyes before departing from the group. Outside the movie theater, Zay offers to walk Maya home and they leave the happy couple giving them smirks and making silly faces at them as they depart.

Lucas and Riley go the other direction and walk hand-in-hand.

"So what happened with you and Maya," Riley asks.

"Well SOMEONE meddled and I figured out you had talked to her about Zay," he replies giving her a knowing look.

"Whaaaatttt," Riley asks in pretend shock.

Lucas chuckles before replying, "Maya could tell that you had talked to me about her and Zay from the looks we gave her in the theater so of course she had to question me about it."

"Well? Does she like him? Wait, I should let her tell me. No, I can't wait! I GOTS TO KNOW," Riley exclaims in excitement.

"No, she just confirmed what I ALREADY told you earlier tonight. It's too soon and neither of them are ready for anything romantic," he replies nudging her with his shoulder.

"Ugh, alright fine. I'll leave them alone," she responds sadly. "I guess I just got excited at the thought of her and I having our first boyfriends at the same time you know?"

"Yea I get that," Lucas says in agreement. "Y'all have always done everything together and this is the first time that you can't."

"Yea," Riley responds. She sighs and they both stop realizing that they've reached her apartment building. She goes to enter the code when Lucas stops her.

"Wait," he almost yells out.

Riley turns around and looks at him confused. "Aren't you going to walk me up to my door," she questions.

"I will...I mean, I am but there's something I want to do first and I'm afraid that your dad will be watching us through the peephole and will run out at stop me..." he replies nervously.

"Stop you from what," Riley asks still confused.

Lucas grabs her and pulls her in for a kiss.

"From that," he breaths out afterward.

Riley smiles and lets out a low giggle (the kind her and Maya do when they see a cute boy).

Lucas chuckles and motions for her to put the code in. When they get to her front door, they hug and say goodnight and she watches Lucas leave.

When she enters the door to her apartment, she finds her parents sitting on the couch. Cory then jumps up, points at her then looks at his watch. He looks as if he's gonna yell at her but then he squints at his watch then puts his arm down. "He brought you home early," he exclaims and plops back down on the couch. Topanga rolls her eyes at him then turns towards Riley and asks,"How was your date, honey?"

Riley falls back and leans against the door before replying, "It was amazing."


	4. Chapter 4 - Moving Day

**A/N: Just a reminder that this story is not for a specific couple that I'm shipping. This is my version of where I think the show was going. That being said there will be lots of surprises coming up. I do have the end in mind though (kinda like the whole Gilmore Girls "the final four words" thing) which is why I titled this _End Game,_ so I do have a plan ;)**

 ***spoiler alert***

 **I will let y'all in on one thing since it was brought up...out of all the couple ships, I hate Zaya the most. I only wrote it in because the GMW writers did. So because I am doing a continuation of what has already been done, I needed to let it play out. Don't worry though, Zaya will not happen in this story. (Sorry to any Zaya shippers out there but no)**

 **So here it goes! Hope y'all stick it out with me!**

Chapter 4 – Moving Day

"Seriously, Matthews," Maya retorts as she sits at her desk reading the words _SHAWN_ written on the chalkboard.

Mr. Matthews smiles from ear to ear and replies, "Yea huh!" He begins singing nonsense and dancing joyfully without shame.

"He's really, _REALLY_ excited that your family is moving into the apartment above us," Riley says shaking her head at her dad's antics. "That place has been up for rent for like...three years now."

"You mean he's excited that _SHAWN_ is moving into the apartment above you," Maya corrects her.

"Well, yea! He's almost as excited as I am that _YOU_ are moving into the apartment above us," Riley exclaims unable to contain her excitement any longer.

Maya slowly smiles and allows the excitement to overtake her and they both jump up then join Mr. Matthews in singing and dancing joyfully without shame.

"How long do you think they're gonna do this," Lucas asks Farkle from their desks looking up at them in amusement.

"I don't know but I like seeing them this happy. I don't think I've ever seen Maya look this happy since I've known her. It's nice," he replies. He smiles fondly at them.

"Really, Cory? Is this how you teach my daughter," Shawn interjects as he enters the classroom.

"Shawny! Uncle Shawn! Dad," the three yell at the same time stopping mid-dance.

Shawn gives Cory a knowing look then Cory runs up to hug him excitedly. They jump and hug like giddy school girls and the students in the whole class laugh at the sight.

"How did our real life become like a TV Show," Shawn asks as him and Cory pull away from each other.

"I know! You're my wacky neighbor now," Cory replies excitedly. "It's the Cory and Shawn Show!"

Cory puts his hands up in the air and starts to sing animatedly, "Cory and Shawn in the big city, and nobody talks but them!" He turns to Shawn in expectancy.

Shawn rolls his eyes but gives in and sings back, "I'll be a cop and you'll run the deli and nobody talks but them!"

They cross their arms and pose back to back. Maya and Riley stare at them wide-eyed then the class breaks out into applause and more laughter.

"Ok, as much as I enjoy wasting time in class," Maya interjects pulling the two men apart, "why are you here, Dad?" She smiles as she says the word _Dad_ like it's still new to her.

"Well your adoption has gone through so I wanted to officially introduce you to your teacher and class," Shawn replies smiling ear to ear.

Maya and Riley look at each other and squeal then Riley goes back to her seat as Maya stands in front of the class.

Shawn puts his hands on her shoulders and announces, "Students, Mr. Matthews, I'd like you to officially meet Maya Penelope Hunter!"

"Yay," Riley exclaims from her seat as the rest of the class smiles, waves or says a short, "hey."

Maya turns around to Shawn and gives him a hug. Shawn then turns to Cory who has never looked prouder. "Hey Cor, we need to fill out some paperwork in the front office real quick, do you mind if I pull her out of class," Shawn asks him.

Cory pats his shoulder before replying, "Go right ahead."

Shawn and Maya head out of the classroom and everyone watches them leave with smiles on their faces.

"Hey so we'll all meet at Riley's house to get things figured out then we'll head out to my place to load everything up," Maya says as she sits down at the lunch table. "You will all be there tomorrow, right?"

Riley, Lucas, Zay, Farkle and Smackle all nod their heads in agreement as they go about eating their lunch.

"Do you still need help packing," Riley asks between bites. Maya nods her head yes.

"Ok, I'll come over after school then," she responds.

"How early are we talking for tomorrow," Zay interjects with his mouth half full.

"I think my dad said 8 o'clock because of the truck rental something or other," Maya replies.

"Oh man that is early," Zay retorts.

"But he'll be glad to sacrifice sleeping in for his friend who needs help," Lucas interrupts giving Zay a knowing look

"Yea, what he said," Zay responds while taking another bite of his sandwich.

"Maya, I will be there but I am not sure that my assistance would suffice in comparison to what say, Lucas, can offer. Are you certain that you would need my services," Smackle inquires.

"Well you can help with the small things and organizing stuff," Maya replies.

"Yea we just want all of our friends to be there. Any kind of help is appreciated," Riley says reassuringy.

"Then I will be there as a friend to support in ways that friends do," Smackle says assuredly. Farkle smiles at her and they continue to eat.

Topanga hears a knock at the door and goes to open it.

"Oh hey, Shawn," she greets as Shawn enters the apartment. "Cory, your boyfriend is here," she yells towards the hallway. They chuckle.

"Hey neighbor," Cory half yells as he emerges from the hallway.

"Hey I just wanted to give you guys a copy of the key to the apartment. You know in case of emergencies and because," Shawn responds.

"Yay," Cory interrupts. Topanga chuckles in amusement before saying, "Shawn, we're so proud of you. I can't believe that you are finally settling down and have a family of your own. We're very happy for you."

"Thanks, Topanga," Shawn replies. "To be honest, I'm kinda nervous. I've never had a family like this before and now I have to be the man of the house. I have no idea what I'm doing here."

"You know more than you think," Cory says putting his hand on Shawn's shoulder reassuringly.

"And we'll be right here for you," Topanga states confidently.

"Thanks guys," Shawn responds. "Cor, you're still helping me get the moving truck in the morning, right?"

Cory nods his head yes. "Oh and can you see if Josh can help? We could use all the help we can get," Shawn asks towards Topanga.

"I'll check with him," Topanga replies.

"Ok thanks. See you tomorrow," Shawn says on his way out the door.

Riley enters Maya's bedroom and her jaw drops. "MAYA," she exclaims looking around the room. "You haven't packed a single thing!" Her room remained untouched except a few empty boxes shoved in a corner.

Maya shrugs and gives her a puppy dog look.

"When I asked you about how packing was going earlier this week, you said you only had a few things left to pack," Riley says still in shock.

"I mean I do only have a few things so that technically wasn't a lie," Maya says in her defense.

"Maya, you are moving TOMORROW," Riley practically yells in Maya's face.

"I know this. That's why I asked you to help me tonight," Maya replies as she sits on her bed.

Riley gets quiet and observes her best friend. "You don't think it's going to happen, do you," she asks joining Maya on the bed.

Maya sighs before replying, "No, it's not that."

Riley puts her arm around her and says, "Maya, you have a family now. That's bound to change things."

"I know this. I really do," Maya replies. "It just. It's a lot of change and I'm not sure that I'm entirely ready."

Maya puts her head on Riley's shoulder. "Peaches, you're more ready than you think," Riley responds reassuringly.

Riley gets her phone out and starts texting like a mad woman. "Uh what are you doing, Riles," Maya asks confused.

"We're gonna need help," she states matter-of-factually. Riley jumps up off the bed and forces Maya up. She grabs the few empty boxes out of the corner of the room and points to Maya's closet. Maya grabs the box in defeat and starts to fold clothes.

Soon they hear a knock at the window. Riley opens the window to let Lucas and Farkle in.

"Wow you weren't kidding, Riley," Lucas states looking around.

"Maya, I know you like to procrastinate but this is just too much," Farkle interjects his eyes wide-eyed as he looks around the room.

"Hey I didn't ask for your help or opinions," Maya retorts as she shoots them an annoyed look. "Riles, why'd you tell them to come here?"

Riley chuckles before replying, "Um because we need help! We need to pack up this whole bedroom by tomorrow morning and," she pauses and looks inside the box Maya was filling from her closet, "and you've only got three shirts packed!"

"Yea, Maya. We just want to help. It looks like you need it," Lucas states. Maya glares at him.

"I'm really gonna miss this place, Maya," Farkle interjects. Maya freezes and Lucas and Riley stare at them feeling the atmosphere in the room shift. "That's why you didn't pack right? This is home and you're not ready to say goodbye?"

Maya's eyes begin to water as she looks up at Farkle. He nods his head and puts his arm around her. "I've always liked your home, Maya. I still have a replica in my room remember? It's not the fanciest but it's nice and cozy," he says as she leans in to hug him.

Lucas and Riley gather around them. "I know I had some terrible memories here but some weren't so bad. This is all I've ever known. The only home I've ever had. People know me here. This is my place and I'm scared of what I'll become once this isn't a part of me anymore," Maya says tears running down her face.

"You will be, Maya Hunter. The one and only. And this place will always be a part of you," Riley says reassuringly.

"Yea just because you leave a place, doesn't mean that it leaves you. It stays with you, right here," Lucas responds putting his hand to his heart.

Maya smiles before replying, "Thanks, guys." They all smile back and squeeze her in a group hug causing them lose their balance. They laugh and Riley says, "Ok now let's get to work! We've got to get you packed up...neighbor!" The girls smile at each other then stand up and grab more boxes.

Shawn paces back and forth anxiously in the Matthew's living room as Maya and Riley lay sprawled out on the couch groaning.

"What's up with you two," Shawn asks stopping in front of the couch.

"We were up late packing Maya's room up," Riley replies tiredly with her eyes still closed.

"So I like to procrastinate. Who's surprised," Maya responds just as groggily, her eyes refusing to open.

"Is everyone here," Shawn asks impatiently.

Topanga and Katy walk in from the kitchen sipping coffee. "Almost, I think we're just waiting on Josh and Riley's friends," Topanga says between sips.

"Wait, wha," Maya exclaims her eyes popping open as she jumps up from the couch. "Did you say Josh is coming?" At this point Riley's eyes pop open too and they exchange a knowing look.

"Yea I asked him to help out," Topanga replies.

"I LOVE YOU," Maya exclaims as she grabs Riley's hand and drags her upstairs. They practically run into Cory who has to jump out of the way. He shrugs then heads for the kitchen.

"Uh, what was that about," Shawn asks confused. Katy and Topanga smile then share a look before Katy replies, "Maya has a little...well uh, crush on Josh."

Cory joins them in the living room chewing on a muffin.

"She what now," Shawn asks leaning in towards Katy to make sure that he heard her correctly.

"Honey, she likes him. She thinks he's cute and she gets all weird. You know teenage girl stuff," Katy replies nonchalantly.

Shawn tenses up and looks at Cory who pauses mid-chew. "Uh oh," Cory interjects with his mouth full.

"She is way too young for boys," Shawn says through clenched teeth.

"Hon, it's fine. Don't worry about it," Katy replies as she pats him on the shoulder.

"Yea Shawn, it's not a big deal. We just went through this kind of thing with Riley," Topanga agrees with her friend. The two women sit on the couch looking up at their husbands.

"Not...a...big...deal," Shawn says, his face beginning to turn red. Cory puts his muffin down on the coffee table and walks towards Shawn slowly.

"Now Shawny, I completely understand. It was a hard thing for me to be ok with Riley liking a boy too but I've learned to handle it well. No need to overreact," Cory says cautiously approaching him.

"Pah! Handle it well," Topanga mocks. "He used to chase Lucas out the bay window! We still have a bucket of his shoes!"

"I'm freaking out here, Cory," Shawn exclaims his voice shaky. Just then the doorbell rings.

"Here comes funny," Topanga leans in and tells Katy before yelling, "Come in!"

Josh, Lucas, Zay, Smackle and Farkle appear in the doorway and step inside.

"YOU," Shawn says pointing his finger in Josh's face.

"And you," Cory says following suit and pointing his finger in Lucas' face.

Zay, Smackle and Farkle take two steps back as Josh and Lucas look at the men confused.

"Oh hey guys," Riley greets emerging from the hallway.

"Yea hey," Maya greets following behind Riley. Her hair that was up in a messy bun earlier was now down and freshly curled. Her makeup visibly darker.

"No, no, no, NO," Shawn yells as he runs in front of her then sticks his arms out blocking her from Josh.

"Uh Dad, what are you doing," Maya asks in a low voice clearly embarrassed.

"No to all this," he exclaims gesturing towards her hair then Josh.

At this point Josh and Lucas catch on and they relax a bit. Josh sneaks a look at Maya then chuckles and rubs the back of his head before saying, "I'm just here to help you guys out."

Cory looks around the room and realizes how ridiculous he looks still pointing at Lucas. He awkwardly puts his arm down then walks towards Shawn. He forces Shawn's arms down that were still "defending" Maya. He puts his arm around Shawn pulling him away from Maya and says in his ear, "Yo Shawn, be cool man. Freaking out is not the answer."

"And there's the funny," Topanga interjects as her and Katy break out into laughter on the couch.

Riley rolls her eyes and shakes her head at the two men as she goes up to her mom's ear and asks, "Can we move this along?" Topanga nods her head yes and stands up off the couch.

"Ok, how about we get started? What's the plan guys," she asks hoping to change the subject and move on.

"Well we need to move all the stuff from the house onto the truck, then bring it all upstairs obviously. We also need people to clean and prep the apartment above us before all the stuff gets here," Katy explains.

As she's talking, Shawn makes a face like he's has a brilliant idea and blurts out, "Ok, so how about you, you, you and you clean the apartment upstairs while the rest of us guys go and load the truck?" He points at Riley, Maya, Smackle and Topanga.

"That's a great idea, honey...except it sounds like I'm going with you and I really don't want to lift things," Katy says standing up from the couch.

"Well, we'll need you direct all of us guys since you organized everything at the house," Shawn replies.

Maya smirks realizing what's happening and forms a plan of her own. "Or, I could go with them since I know where everything is too. Plus, I would actually lift some stuff unlike mom over here," Maya interjects walking over to her mother and nudging her.

"Yea actually that's a better idea. Let's do that," Katy states nodding her head in agreement. Shawn makes a face at her and she just shrugs and walks towards Topanga.

"I go where, Maya goes," Riley interjects as she grabs Maya's arm and they walk over to their friends.

"Good it's settled. We'll stay here and clean," Topanga says happily waving goodbye to them.

Shawn shoots Topanga and Katy an annoyed look then grabs the keys to the truck out of his pocket. "Fine, let's go," he says begrudgingly and they all turn to head out the door.

"Let's start with the big stuff. I'll need your help boys," Shawn says motioning towards the couches and beds. Cory, Lucas, Josh and Zay go to help Shawn.

"Will you guys help me separate all the fragile stuff into this corner here so that they don't get squished in the truck," Maya asks Riley, Smackle and Farkle who nod yes.

They all work as little by little the piles disappear and the house looks emptier and emptier. Josh sneaks away for a bit and catches Maya in her room. She stands leaning out the window. He watches her from the doorway.

"You going to miss this place," he asks.

"Yea. This view especially," Maya replies without turning around, still watching the street. Josh goes to the window and leans out beside her.

"I think I'm gonna miss the people I see everyday. It's going to be weird not walking by them each day anymore," Maya says her eyes following people walking through the streets.

"Yea, you'll just see different people from now on," he states. "And maybe you'll see some people more often...you know, people who visit their older brothers...especially now after he heard about their interesting new neighbors."

Maya turns and smiles at him. He smiles back. "Maybe different isn't so bad," she says.

"HEY," they hear Shawn practically yell behind them. They jump nearly hitting their heads on the top of the window pane. They turn around slowly and see a visibly angry and tense Shawn. Everyone else's heads are seen peering around the doorway watching in anticipation.

"Whatever this is, stop it," Shawn says stepping towards them.

"Dad," Maya squeaks out.

"Shawn," Josh interrupts putting his hands up in surrender yet taking a step towards him. "I want you to know that Maya and I aren't anything right now." Shawn looks at Maya who purses her lips at Josh's statement.

"However, I do like her a lot and I'm hoping that in the future she and I could date maybe," Josh continues as he looks at Maya who forms a smile then back at Shawn.

Shawn stands silent for a bit causing the tension in the room to build. Everyone else continues to watch in anticipation.

He sighs before asking, "So not right now?"

"No, not right now," Josh responds reassuringly. "But when the time comes, I promise to ask your permission." Maya is grinning from ear to ear at this point.

"Thank you, Josh. I'm just...very protective of her," Shawn says looking at Maya. She walks over and hugs him in appreciation.

"Thank you," Maya interjects. Shawn seems taken back by this. "Thank you for acting like a crazy person and being an over-protective dad over me. I've seen Mr. Matthews be this way over Riley and it's nice having it for me, so thanks for embarrassing me, _Dad_."

Shawn smiles and hugs her one more time. "Let's finish up here and get us moved in," Shawn announces and everyone responds, "Yea!" as they head out.

"Hey let's give everyone a tour before we start unloading," Katy says greeting everyone at the door of their new apartment. The layout was very similar to the Matthews' apartment except the wall colors and a few things on an opposite wall and such. Katy walks them through each hallway and bedroom before stopping at the last one.

"Maya, this room will be yours," Katy announces proudly. Maya and her friends all file into her room. Her and Riley notice the bay window immediately. Both girls look at each other and smile before running to sit at the bay window which was on the right side of Maya's room as opposed to Riley's which was on the left side.

They cross their legs, flick their hair behind their shoulders and say, "Stop it." Their friends smile fondly at them then gather around them in the bay window.

"All these years, I've always loved the bay window in your room, Riley. It was my safe place and now I have my own," Maya says tears forming in her eyes.

"Now we have two safe places," Riley states putting her hand on Maya's arm with her eyes beginning to tear up as well.

"Wow a world with two bay windows," Maya says looking around. "I'm beginning to like change."


End file.
